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Leonard Cohen Live from London on WXXI-TV

Leonard Cohen Live from London on WXXI-TV

Sat, 12/04/2010 - 10:00pm

Leonard Cohen

Credit: Locra Cohen

See the concert that earned Cohen more than 80 five-star reviews.

In 2008 Leonard Cohen, the influential singer/songwriter whose career spans four decades, embarked on his first tour in 15 years. Fans and critics alike hailed the show as a "once in a lifetime experience." Recorded live on July 17, 2008, at London’s 02 Arena, one of Europe’s largest indoor venues, Leonard Cohen Live from London airs Saturday, December 4 at 10 p.m. on WXXI-TV (DT21.1/cable1011/cable11).

For more than 40 years, Cohen has been regarded one of the most important songwriters of our time. His songs have set a virtually unmatched standard in their seriousness and range. Sex, spirituality, religion, power — Cohen has relentlessly examined the big issues in human life, always with a full appreciation of how elusive the answers can be to the vexing questions he raises. But those questions are the substance of his work, as well as the reasons his songs never lose their emotional force. Documentaries, awards, tribute albums and the ongoing march of artists eager to record his songs all testify to the contribution Cohen has made to what one of his titles aptly calls “The Tower of Song.”

The program fully captures and re-creates the extraordinary show that earned Cohen more than 80 five-star reviews for performances during his fall 2008 UK tour. “A unique, soul-stirring event, surely destined to be remembered as one of the great shows of the year,” said the Manchester Evening News.